suicide Girls in Blackheart burlesque

Over the weekend I scored a pass to shoot the Blackheart Burlesque show put on by Suicide Girls while stopped at the Showbox in Seattle, WA. They were on their way to Canada and decided to visit the Pacific Northwest. 

WARNING: Some of the following, while not technically containing nudity, is certainly NSFW. Please use common sense and avoid clicking if you'd rather not see that sort of content. 

I arrived early in hopes of talking to a few of the performers and snapping a few portraits. The pre-show atmosphere was fun and energetic. While waiting for fans to stroll in the Showbox staff and SG support crew were privy to multiple renditions of random pop songs sung by the Girls and ideas for possible upcoming dances. "Your ass is amazing," one said to another. "You should do a dance to Pocahontas," another quipped.

The group that was brought to perform were all truly beautiful inside and out. To any loyal viewer of their FB page, instagram, twitter feed or pay site the outer beauty of these ladies is no surprise. The surprise was to see how nice and upbeat they all were to each other, staff, fans and seemingly anyone they came in contact with. It was nearly impossible to keep a straight face during those interactions. I realize it might be different backstage or on the bus but no matter, they put on a great face for everyone to see. 

If off stage they were all calm, once on stage they jacked the energy up to eleven. Word to the wise, this is not your typical Burlesque show. This is a balls to the wall event that straddles the wafer-thin divide between burlesque and strip show, then crushes it until you cannot comprehend a difference any longer. Being coy was replaced with being flagrant. Teasing the audience was swapped for teasing each other on stage. 

While the style and tone might not be to everyone's liking, these women knew their audience well. With every article of clothing that was thrown aside there was an accompanying roar from the crowd. A howl of delight with every stroke performed by one on stage to another. The fans wanted as much as they could get and aside from their trademark black tape "x" the Suicide Girls were gonna give it to them.  

In all honesty I did not stay for the entire show. After three dances the security team at the Showbox made getting any decent photos hell. I was relegated to the back of the crowd and from there I mainly saw the tops of the performers' heads and a ton of iPhone screens being held up to record the action. Before I left I did catch some interesting audience participation, a thriller rendition and a reimagining of Little Mermaid's "Part of this World" that nearly ruined my childhood ideals of Ariel. 

Even with the soul-crushing realization that one of my favorite childhood characters is in actuality a sex-starved huntress, I remain a loyal fan of these women and their photography. There is a power and confidence to it that is alarmingly magnificent. 

-Joe